Ovechkin’s still got it, and the Kings might finally have it: Early Stanley Cup playoff takeaways
The first 13 games of the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs are in the books — thanks for finally joining the party, Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning — so each team has had a chance to show the new postseason version of itself.
Which teams and players made the best early impression? Who has room for improvement? How will all of it matter when it comes to the rest of Round 1 and the entire postseason?
ESPN reporters Ryan S. Clark, Kristen Shilton and Greg Wyshynski identified their top takeaways off of the first set of games, covering all eight series.
Read more:
Full schedule
Intel on all 16 teams
Top 50 players
Wyshynski’s bracket
Contender flaws
In just two games, the Avs-Stars series once again proves that all contributions are needed
One of them earns just slightly more than $1 million this season while the other has at least three games remaining on his one-year contract worth $775,000. Yet what they’ve done has been instrumental in why the much-anticipated first-round series between the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars is tied at 1-1.
Logan O’Connor is a point away from being tied for the postseason lead in scoring, while Colin Blackwell‘s second-ever playoff goal prevented the Avs from having a 2-0 series advantage before heading back to Denver.
It’s not that premier talents such as Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Jake Oettinger and Mikko Rantanen won’t play a role in the series. But for either team to keep advancing, they’re going to need help from the supporting cast. That’s something the Avs know all too well, as a lack of supporting cast has hindered them the past two years, whereas the Stars ran into that problem during last year’s Western Conference finals.
O’Connor is part of the Avs’ fourth line featuring Jack Drury and Parker Kelly that has already accounted for two goals and seven points; the bottom six has scored three of the Avs’ eight goals through two games. As for Blackwell, he’s a member of the Stars’ fourth line with Oskar Back and Sam Steel that had four points, with each forward averaging more than 10 minutes of ice time. The Stars’ bottom-six group at large was responsible for two of their three goals in Game 2. — Clark
0:50
Colin Blackwell comes up with big OT winner for Stars
Colin Blackwell sends the Stars faithful into jubilation with a great overtime winner to tie the series at 1-1 vs. the Avalanche.
Can the Core Four actually dominate a playoff series?
The Maple Leafs’ Core Four heard those criticisms about their past playoff performances — and they’ve begun to issue a rebuttal. In Game 1 of Toronto’s series against Ottawa, Mitch Marner led the way with three points, and all of William Nylander, Auston Matthews and John Tavares added a pair of points. Tavares added a goal and an assist in Game 2, while Marner, Nylander and Matthews all picked up assists.
Marner’s efforts were particularly noteworthy given his history of stumbles in the postseason. He had just three points in seven playoff games last season (another first-round exit for Toronto) and, in this ever-important contract year, Marner had further incentive to show he can be at his best when it matters most.
If Marner & Co. are finally primed to be big-time producers in the league’s second season (as they so often are for those first 82 tilts), then the Leafs may be on their way to actually fulfilling some long-anticipated postseason potential. Because no matter how strong Toronto’s goaltending is or how much improved their defensive play is, the tide has always turned with the Leafs’ top strikers.
Where the Four go, Toronto will follow. Right? — Shilton
The old guy has still got it
Whenever Alex Ovechkin scores goals, especially at home in D.C., I think back to something Tom Wilson said earlier this season during the Capitals captain’s successful pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record.
“There’s just a little extra excitement every time he scores,” Wilson said. “Everyone [on our bench] kind of jumps through the roof whenever he finds the back of the net — which is fitting because he’s always the most excited guy on the ice when anybody else scores.”
Look at Game 1 against Montreal when Ovechkin scored on the power play to give the Caps a 1-0 lead and the roof came off the place. Look at the celebration both from Ovi and the Caps when he ended the game in overtime — rather incredibly, the first postseason overtime goal of his storied career.
1:51
Alex Ovechkin’s OT goal wins Game 1 for Capitals
Alex Ovechkin’s second goal of the game is an overtime winner that gives the Capitals a 1-0 series lead vs. the Canadiens.
From the scoreboard to the dressing room to the vibes, he’s the pacesetter for this team. It’s hard to call his season underappreciated given the fanfare of breaking Gretzky’s record, but has there been a more overlooked MVP performance in the Hart Trophy race than Ovechkin’s this season?
Here’s what MVPs do: They rise to the moment in critical spots. The Canadiens are trying to pull a massive upset in the first round. Their strong third period to tie the game against a too-comfortable Washington team sent the game to overtime. A win in the extra session and all of those ghosts from past playoff humiliations might start haunting the Capitals. Ovechkin knows those ghosts. He has felt the tension that builds in D.C. when things go wrong against a lower seed. And he shut the door. Remember that if the Capitals manage to snuff out this upset bid. — Wyshynski
Are we currently watching the best version of Mark Scheifele … ever?
Few teams have faced the kind of questions the Winnipeg Jets have encountered for several years, because that’s what happens when a team has made it out of the first round only twice since 2011. The Jets’ 2-1 win Monday in Game 2 against the St. Louis Blues means they now have a 2-0 series lead for the first time since the 2021 postseason, which was also the last time they won a playoff series.
Now there’s another question: How dominant can Mark Scheifele be this postseason?
Consistency has been at the heart of Scheifele becoming a responsible, two-way center who has authored 10 consecutive seasons of more than 20 goals and 60 points. This season, he finished with a career-high 87 points, while his 39 goals were his second-highest ever.
Through two games against the Blues, Scheifele has either scored or created all but two of the Jets’ seven goals. Kyle Connor is the only Jets forward who has logged more 5-on-5 ice time than Scheifele. Even then, it’s just a difference of 31 seconds. The Blues have failed to score in 5-on-5 play when Schiefele has been on the ice, and they have mustered only two high-danger scoring chances in that time.
Yet the most jarring aspect of what he’s doing? He’s just a point shy of matching what he did in last year’s playoffs when the Jets were eliminated in five games, while being two points short of tying how many playoff points he has had over the past two years total. — Clark
It’s the Tkachuks’ world (we’re just living in it)
History was made on Tuesday night: For the first time in the NHL, two Tkachuks competed in Stanley Cup playoff games on the same night — and scored goals. According to ESPN Research, this was the 83rd time two brothers have scored on the same day of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Prior to the Tkachuks’ tallies, the last instance was when Marcus (Wild) and Nick Foligno (Bruins) both scored on April 21, 2023.
Matthew Tkachuk is no stranger to the postseason, having appeared in 72 games during his career with the Calgary Flames and Florida Panthers — 45 of them over the past three seasons. But Brady Tkachuk had to wait seven seasons until the Ottawa Senators made the cut, and he made his postseason debut in Round 1 against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Brady Tkachuk scored his first playoff goal in Game 2. He sent a between-the-legs pass in front of the net on the power play that deflected off the skate of Brandon Carlo and into the net. The Senators rallied to send the game to overtime, but Toronto took a 2-0 series lead on a Max Domi goal in the extra session.
“There’s no ounce of panic or doubt in this locker room. We’re looking forward to getting home,” Brady said. “Things happen. You’re not always going to get the bounces So be it. It’s just going to make it that much sweeter.”
Matthew Tkachuk played his first game since being injured in the 4 Nations Face-Off back in February, and he immediately made an impact. It was a negative one at first: Taking a roughing penalty against Nikita Kucherov in the first period that led to Jake Guentzel‘s game-tying goal. But he more than atoned for that sin with back-to-back power-play goals in the second period to make it 5-1 for Florida. He added an assist on Nate Schmidt‘s power-play goal in the third.
0:48
Matthew Tkachuk scores through chaos for Panthers
Matthew Tkachuk scores his second power-play goal of the second period to give the Panthers a 5-1 lead over the Lightning.
“What was on display was the hands. He has an incredible set of hands,” said Florida coach Paul Maurice, who otherwise felt that Tkachuk “wasn’t in the rhythm of the game” after his layoff.
Which means there’s room for improvement. Which is scary for the Lightning.
(Also scary: We’ve yet to see Tkachuck and Brad Marchand on the same line together, combining their powers for the apex of on-ice hockey trolling.)
The NHL playoff format is such that the Tkachuks could face each other in the second round if the Panthers advance past the Lightning and the Senators upset the Maple Leafs. One outcome looks a lot more possible at the moment. But never count out a motivated Tkachuk. — Wyshynski
Carolina’s fresh faces fitting in fine
The Hurricanes may have moved on from one all-star forward in Mikko Rantanen. But the skaters GM Erik Tulsky has brought to the Hurricanes — and subsequently retained — are still making their presence felt.
Logan Stankoven was the centerpiece of Carolina’s return in trading Rantanen to Dallas, and the rising star pumped in two goals against New Jersey in Game 1. Even before the postseason, Stankoven looked like a perfect fit for the Canes. The 22-year-old plays their style of game — he’s relentless battling for pucks, forechecks with conviction and has playmaking talents to spare. The way Stankoven has cultivated a natural chemistry with Jordan Staal is everything Carolina could have hoped for when he came on board. That Stankoven is giving the Hurricanes depth scoring when that has been an Achilles’ heel in playoffs past? It’s perfect. And he’s not the only one giving Carolina its money’s worth.
0:44
Logan Stankoven’s 2nd goal gives Hurricanes a 3-0 lead
Logan Stankoven notches his second goal of the game to give the Hurricanes a 3-0 lead.
Tulsky also acquired veteran forward Taylor Hall midseason, and his early playoff performance has been promising. Hall’s line with Andrei Svechnikov and Jesperi Kotkaniemi was excellent in Game 1 — even without breaking onto the score sheet — generating 12 shots on goal and out-chancing the Devils 20-6. They could be a significant weapon for the Hurricanes as these playoffs roll along.
Most importantly, Carolina doesn’t feel so top-heavy now. The Hurricanes have been tripped up before by diminishing offensive contributors in a long postseason run. The way their fresh faces are fitting in, though, puts Carolina on a promising track to greater playoff success. — Shilton
What version of the Kings will show up in Game 2 against the Oilers?
For all the strides the Los Angeles Kings made in Jim Hiller’s first full season, nobody quite knew what to expect once the postseason started.
And in some ways, there are still no guarantees beyond the fact that the Kings now possess a 1-0 series lead following their 6-5 win in Game 1 over the Edmonton Oilers. After building a commanding four-goal lead against the team that has been both the literal and proverbial roadblock the past three postseasons, the Kings were reminded of why no lead of more than two goals is safe whenever they play the Oilers in the playoffs.
Why? Because 12 of the 18 playoff games between the Oilers and Kings over the past three years have been decided by less than two goals. Maybe that’s what made Monday’s game so jarring yet so familiar.
But to witness the version of the Kings that rallied to win Game 1 with a Phillip Danault goal with 42 seconds remaining? It’s something the Kings have done before against the Oilers as they did it in the 2022 and 2023 postseasons… only to then lose the series.
Are the Kings are once again in for a similar fate? Or could they finally have the answers that get them beyond their perennial tormentors and into the second round? — Clark
Special teams already playing a special role
The Vegas Golden Knights drew fewer penalties than any team in the regular season. They earned the second-fewest power-play opportunities. And yet, Vegas had the second-best power play in the league.
How? Well, just ask the Minnesota Wild.
The Wild took just two penalties in Game 1 against the Golden Knights and were burned on the man advantage both times. That’s how Vegas works. They see an opportunity, they take it.
That’s something of a theme in this early first-round action, actually. There has been plenty of power-play action. And it has been a healthy factor in determining several outcomes. In fact, through an extremely small sample size, power plays are converting at the highest rate (33.8%) in Stanley Cup playoff history (records available starting in 1977-78).
Toronto scored three goals on the man advantage to take Game 1 of their series. Colorado and Dallas each already have two power-play goals. Same with Los Angeles. St. Louis has three — although it hasn’t helped them to a victory yet over Winnipeg. And interestingly, the Jets have just one power-play goal through two games but are tied for the most at even strength (five).
So how much will special teams continue to fuel some of these matchups? Toronto’s coach Craig Berube was quick to say his team shouldn’t be expecting to rely on multiple power-play goals per game to get by. Will clubs be able to tighten up defensively? And even if they do, will those singular man-advantage chances keep tilting the ice in one team’s favor like it did so completely for Vegas in Game 1?
It’s not always a foregone conclusion that regular-season success in any category can carry over to the postseason, but the quick returns in this one show how what worked before can keep carrying the day for some contenders — Shilton
The Wild have scored seven goals in their series against the Vegas Golden Knights. Kirill Kaprizov has had a hand in five of them, including a three-point Game 2 performance that helped the Wild knot things up at 1-1 headed back to Minnesota.
In Game 1, he had the primary assist on both of Matt Boldy‘s goals, which got Minnesota within one goal with 8:14 left in the third period before Brett Howden‘s empty-netter iced the 4-2 Vegas win.
In Game 2, Kaprizov hooked up with Boldy again to open the scoring with one of the best saucer passes in recent memory.
0:42
Matt Boldy goes five-hole to put Wild in front
Matt Boldy nets his third goal of the series as the Wild take a 1-0 lead over the Golden Knights.
“That might have been the best pass I’ve ever seen. It was unbelievable,” Boldy said. “He is a special player.”
The Wild built a 3-0 lead after the first period. Kaprizov’s goal 3:59 into the second period offered a huge bit of insurance as Vegas rallied. He then iced the game with an empty-netter to complete the two-goal night.
There’s a certain poetry in Kaprizov being an early postseason MVP, when one considers how his regular season turned out. The Wild star was limited to 41 games thanks to a lower-body injury that required surgery in January. Please recall the ESPN Awards Watch for that month, which Kaprizov still led while having already missed a few games. Were it not for his injury, it’s entirely conceivable that Kirill the Thrill ends up as a Hart Trophy finalist.
Instead, he’ll have to settle for being Minnesota’s offensive savior in the playoffs, helping to orchestrate a possible upset over the division champion Golden Knights. The Twin Cities should be rocking for Game 3 on Thursday. — Wyshynski
In Starkville, they stormed the field with cowbells.
In Gainesville, they might soon be storming the castle with pitchforks.
For the SEC’s tale of two cities on Saturday, it was the best of times for Mississippi State and, if not the worst of times for Florida, it was perhaps the moment any hope for a revival under Billy Napier reached its nadir.
It was a Saturday about which much of the college football world offered a collective yawn in advance, but the day delivered its share of highlights and surprises, from Clemson‘s early struggles against Troy, to Baylor‘s rollicking comeback against SMU, to Bill Belichick racking up win No. 1 in college.
But all of that took second billing behind the audacity of the two most unlikely scores in the SEC.
Mississippi State, which had been in danger of being relegated to the title of “new Vandy,” had won just one of its past 17 games against Power 4 competition, but when No. 12 Arizona State rolled into Starkville on Saturday, the Bulldogs were ready.
Quarterback Blake Shapen threw touchdown passes of 48 and 47 yards and, with 30 seconds remaining in the game and trailing by 3, a 58-yarder to Brenen Thompson to seal the 24-20 win.
0:40
Mississippi State upsets Arizona State on game-winning TD
Blake Shapen throws the game-winning touchdown in the final minute as Mississippi State upsets Arizona State.
What followed was utter euphoria unseen in Starkville since they announced the opening of a new Bass Pro Shops. The fans stormed the field, pulled down the goalposts, and, we assume, carried them off to be displayed at the town’s most sacred shrine: the Chili’s off Route 12.
– no context college football (@nocontextcfb) September 7, 2025
Meanwhile, after USF’s go-ahead field goal as time expired knocked off the 13th-ranked Gators 18-16, Florida fans were left to rage against the football gods at their town’s most sacred shrine: the Chili’s off Archer Road.
Last season’s late run that included wins over LSU, Ole Miss and Florida State had offered ample hope that, perhaps, things were finally turning for the Gators. The post-Tim Tebow era has had its highlights, but each was followed almost immediately by a sudden, sharp and occasionally such massive failure that it could only be described as “Zook-tastic.” And so it was with the hope engendered by last year’s four-game winning streak, too.
DJ Lagway struggled to push the ball downfield, Florida was 4-of-12 on third down and the Gators’ defense had no answers for the magic of USF quarterback Byrum Brown, who threw for 263 yards and ran for 66 more.
When the dust settled, Napier was forced to take a hard look in the mirror and ask: “Does anyone remember my LinkedIn password?”
After watching the USF-Florida game, the Department of Labor Statistics has revised Friday’s jobs report from the US adding 22,000 to 22,001 jobs.
– ����️♈️�� (@ADavidHaleJoint) September 6, 2025
Florida still has eight games left against ranked teams, including five of its next six. The lone exception in that run is Mississippi State, which certainly doesn’t look like an easy win now either. A reality in which the Gators finish 2-10 seems entirely possible. Also, the state of Florida hasn’t had a power team finish 2-10 for, like … months.
That Mississippi State, the worst team in the SEC a year ago, could knock off last year’s Big 12 champion would normally be cause for Greg Sankey to drive his car through Brett Yormark’s rose garden while leaning out the window yelling, “Scoreboard!”
That Florida lost to an in-state team from a Group of 6 conference that doesn’t even have its own stadium would be cause for everyone who abhors the SEC’s arrogance to point and laugh and let the air out of Kirby Smart’s tires.
That both occurred on the same Saturday, within hours of each other, is destined to leave us all feeling a bit unfulfilled. Two weeks into a new college football season, perhaps that’s a good thing. That even the mighty SEC feels so uncertain is a reminder that we’ve just begun this story. We don’t yet know who the heroes are, which makes it entirely possible Mississippi State will be one. We don’t yet know which characters will meet with a tragic end, though Napier and Virginia Tech‘s Brent Pry certainly look the part.
If these are the opening chapters of 2025’s Dickens novel, we’re in for a heck of a ride the rest of the way.
Jump to a section:
Trends | Rivalries | Under the radar
Heisman five | Notes from the road
Week 2 Vibe Check
Each week, the biggest games grab the headlines, but dozens of other performances move the needle in college football, too. We try to capture those here.
Trending up: Illinois’ tournament hopes
Duke outgained Illinois by 19 yards on Saturday but still managed to lose by 26 points, 45-19. It was a nifty statistical trick that can be blamed on a flurry of takeaways by the Illini defense, which converted four Duke fumbles and a Darian Mensah interception into 21 points. After the game, Duke noted the strangeness of the outcome, pointing out that it usually waits until the Elite Eight to waste a strong offensive performance because of too many turnovers.
Trending up: Stern discipline
Syracuse narrowly escaped an upset bid against UConn on Saturday, 27-20 in overtime. Syracuse trailed 14-3 at one point, took a 20-17 lead into the final minute of action, then saw the Huskies tie the game with a 41-yard field goal as time expired. A defensive stand in overtime preserved the win, but head coach Fran Brown was less than pleased with the overall performance, forcing his players to run sprints after the game.
You can tell Fran Brown is not happy after that game. He’s making the entire team run sprints post game right now.@NunesMagician pic.twitter.com/lnNl0U6ULy
– Christian De Guzman (@CTDeGuz) September 6, 2025
Worse, Brown also gave explicit “no iPad for a week” orders and put QB Steve Angeli in timeout until he calmed down.
Trending down: Ill-fitting jerseys
Against Gardner Webb, Georgia Tech nearly repeated the brutal start it endured a week earlier vs. Colorado. In Week 1, the Jackets turned over the ball on each of their first three drives. This time, they fumbled away their first possession and tossed a pick on the next. Tech did rebound nicely for a 59-12 win, but the real disappointment was the lack of the Snuggy Jersey (the jersey roomy enough for the whole family to snuggle up and watch old footage of Paul Johnson’s offense, but versatile enough to wear when returning kicks). Unfortunately, Tech head coach Brent Key was not a fan and banished the jersey for good. It’s now stored in College Football’s forgotten treasures warehouse next to the Turnover Chain, Civil ConFliCt trophy and Houston Nutt.
I need to know more about why the Georgia Tech Punter has a XXL Jersey. Did he forget his? Switch numbers ?? There has to be a good reason for it.
�� pic.twitter.com/tkib90Lxno– Alison Mastrangelo (@AlisonWSB) August 30, 2025
Trending up: Celebrity showdowns
There was plenty of star power on display in Boulder, Colorado, in Week 2 as the Buffaloes welcomed Delaware. On one sideline was Deion Sanders, an NFL Hall of Famer, former two-sport star, reality TV personality and one of the biggest brands in sports. On the other sideline was Delaware, which is the country’s fifth-largest producer of shoehorns. The paparazzi was out in full force hoping to get a shot of Coach Prime or Delaware’s Ryan “Coach Tac-Shaver Infomercial on the CW at 3 a.m.” Carty, but the edge, in the case, went to Sanders. His Buffs overcame a sluggish start, no doubt due to being in awe of all the celebrities on Delaware’s sideline (Judge Reinhold, Teri Polo, the guy who works the overnight shift at the Wawa on Union Street), winning 31-7 behind two touchdown passes from third-string QB Ryan Staub. The Hens, meanwhile, had to settle for drowning sorrows with other A-listers at Elisabeth Shue’s late-night hot tub party.
Trending up: Revenge games
If last week was Florida State‘s coming-out party in a win over Alabama, Week 2 offered the Seminoles a chance to enjoy some sweet revenge. FSU walloped East Texas A&M 77-3, then celebrated by shouting, “That’s what you get for stealing Jimbo Fisher” and “We just scored a point for every $1 million you had to pay him to leave” all while its battered opponents helplessly insisted that, in fact, East Texas A&M is a completely different school than Texas A&M.
Trending up: Participation trophies
Division III Rowan was up 17-14 against Case Western with 2:07 left in the third quarter Saturday when a spate of bad weather rolled through — stand by, we’re Googling “Where is Rowan?” — New Jersey, suspending the action. Both sides waited patiently for four hours, listening, we assume, to Bruce Springsteen’s “The River” album on repeat, before school officials, coaches and the referees mutually agreed, according to Rowan’s press release, to call the game a 17-17 tie. The last tie at the FBS level of college football came 30 years ago when a Wisconsin and Illinois game finished 3-3, leading to the advent of overtime throughout college football and the forward pass in the Big Ten.
Trending up: Cash cows
Earlier in the week, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy lamented all the money Oregon spent to build a winner, only for Ducks coach Dan Lanning to retort with a series of “Yo momma’s so poor” jokes and a 69-3 drubbing of the Pokes on Saturday. Meanwhile, Oklahoma, flush with enough cash this offseason to lure star transfers such as QB John Mateer, held off Michigan, a school whose NIL budget is currently earmarked to pay down NCAA fines and get Connor Stalions that new telescope and fake beard he has been asking for, 24-13. The lesson: Teams are only as good as their players, and good players don’t come cheap. On a totally unrelated note, we just received an email from a deposed oil baron in Oklahoma who just needs our credit card and social security numbers to help secure a fortune, which he’ll happily share with us.
Trending down: Coaching legacies
On Nov. 17, 2007, Nick Saban’s Alabama team lost to Louisiana-Monroe 21-14. On Saturday, Kalen DeBoer’s Alabama team beat Louisiana-Monroe 73-0. The math on this is pretty simple: DeBoer is approximately 10 times as good a coach as Saban.
Meanwhile, Clay Helton made his long-awaited return to Los Angeles, taking his Georgia Southern team to USC, a school that fired him in 2021 despite a .657 win percentage at the school — right in line with the Trojans’ current coach, Lincoln Riley (.651). But on Saturday, Riley and USC rolled to a 59-20 win, proving once and for all that hiring him was absolutely the right call.
Rivalry Rundown
Week 2 isn’t a true rivalry week, but it did feature a number of passionate tilts between old enemies.
Cy-Hawk Trophy
Iowa State defeated Iowa 16-13 and held on to the Cy-Hawk Trophy thanks to a pair of circus catches by tight end Gabe Burkle on a go-ahead fourth-quarter drive.
WHAT. A. GRAB.
Gabe Burkle & the Cyclones are in Iowa territory with 2 minutes left pic.twitter.com/J77SRMFfu2
– Bussin’ With The Boys (@BussinWTB) September 6, 2025
It’s the sixth time in the past seven years of the rivalry in which neither team topped 20 points, and in this year’s incarnation, neither squad managed more than 238 yards of offense.
Iowa State prevailed thanks to the leg of kicker Kyle Konrardy, who booted field goals of 44 yards and 27 yards, as well as a 54-yard game winner.
Iowa threw for 83 yards in the game, a tally Kirk Ferentz frustratingly noted was almost the full length of the field and should’ve been plenty enough to win. Still, as punishment, only the defense and punters were allowed to get ice cream at the Tastee-Freez afterward.
In the past seven games in this series, Iowa’s QBs have combined to complete just 51% of their throws, averaged 4.4 yards per pass, thrown just one touchdown and five picks.
Border Showdown
The hatred between Kansas and Missouri dates back nearly two centuries. The hatred between Kansas and Missouri dates back nearly two centuries, ignited by years of guerrilla warfare during the Civil War and reaching its apex when Chase Daniel engineered a truly epic series of prank calls to Mark Mangino’s house in 2007. But since 2011, when Missouri departed for the SEC, the rivalry had remained dormant — until Saturday.
The renewed ferocity between the two programs was on display early, as Kansas jumped out to a 21-6 lead, only to see Missouri roar back. Beau Pribula threw for three touchdowns in helping the Tigers pull away to a 42-31 win — their fifth straight in the series.
And, as is the customary stakes for the loser of this rivalry, Kansas is now forced to take responsibility for the Kansas City Royals.
Baylor-SMU
What was once a heated rivalry in the old Southwest Conference had gone dormant for the past nine years, but Baylor and SMU renewed hostilities in Dallas on Saturday.
SMU hadn’t won in this series since 1986 — the year before the program received the dreaded “death penalty” for running the country’s best NIL collective — but the Mustangs appeared poised to break the streak, nursing a 14-point lead with less than six minutes to play.
But Baylor didn’t back down, riding QB Sawyer Robertson to two late touchdowns to force overtime, where the Bears won on a walk-off field goal, 48-45. Robertson finished with 440 yards passing and four touchdown throws, then did doughnuts in SMU’s parking lot in a Trans Am with a big gold eagle on the hood, just for spite.
Bayou Bucket Classic
Houston upended in-city rival Rice 35-9 behind 132 yards rushing and two touchdowns from running back Dean Connors. The win means, for the second straight year, Houston retains the Bayou Bucket. But don’t feel bad, Rice. Popeye’s sells a Bayou Bucket with three sides for just $21.99. You really can’t beat that deal.
Under-the-radar play of the week
With five minutes left in the first half, and Kent State already trailing 38-0, center Dustyn Morell delivered a play that perfectly sums up the current state of the Golden Flashes program.
Worst snap in football history
Thank you Kent State pic.twitter.com/tgZ85ATr2Y
– Unnecessary Roughness (@UnnecRoughness) September 6, 2025
Texas Tech scored following the fumble recovery and went on to win 62-14. It’s hard to entirely fault Morell though. He’d been eating caramels before the play and his hands were sticky.
Under-the-radar game of the week
With just 1:43 to go, UMass allowed Bryant — a team that’s just 11 guys who all showed up at the local YMCA wearing Kobe Bryant jerseys on the same day — to march 78 yards and drill a 25-yard game-winning field goal. The Minutemen fell 27-26, the most embarrassing moment in the program’s football history since — we’re guessing last week. The good news for UMass is it’s just a mere 35 days away from playing Kent State.
Heisman five
Arch Manning is currently sitting in his car outside the Heisman House listening to mix tapes and wondering how many touchdown passes a guy has to throw against San Jose State to earn a guest pass for the weekend.
1. Oklahoma QB John Mateer
Against one of the nation’s best defenses, Mateer accounted for 344 total yards and three touchdowns in an Oklahoma win over Michigan, shocking fans throughout Columbus, Ohio, who had no idea such a thing was possible.
2. Utah QB Devon Dampier
After torching UCLA in its opener, Utah beat Cal Poly with ease Saturday, as Dampier accounted for three touchdowns for the second straight week. Unfortunately, because the game happened in Utah, no Heisman voters watched.
3. Florida State QB Tommy Castellanos
One week after running all over Alabama, Castellanos used his arm to torch East Texas A&M, racking up 237 yards and three touchdowns. Normally, the ultraconfident Castellanos would talk a little smack to next week’s opponent to set the stage, but FSU gets Kent State in Week 3 and, honestly, that probably doesn’t feel worth it.
4. Baylor QB Sawyer Robertson
Robertson has thrown for 859 yards and seven touchdowns without a pick through two games — both against upper-tier Power 4 competition. He’s suddenly turning heads among NFL scouts. Also, the drive-thru girl at Whataburger threw in some extra fries the last time he was there.
5. LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier
Nussmeier had a less-than-exciting performance in a 23-7 win over Louisiana Tech, throwing for 237 yards, one touchdown and a pick. It was part of a trend of SEC teams struggling to put away lesser competition Saturday, as Georgia and Texas A&M also waited until late in the second half to secure their wins. At least they’re all not Florida.
Game day notes
In making repeated comments about the disparity between Oregon’s budget and Oklahoma State’s earlier this week, head coach Mike Gundy might have both preempted and prompted what transpired at Autzen Stadium on Saturday.
From kickoff, the Ducks dominated every phase of the game on their way to a commanding 69-3 shellacking of the Cowboys. The way Oregon came out of the gates, stepped on the gas pedal and didn’t take their foot off until they were up 48-3 halfway through the third quarter when they brought in the offensive backups (who still got a touchdown of their own) seemed very purposeful. Not only did the Ducks seem interested in beating Gundy’s team, but also in making a statement.
Oregon did not punt until the fourth quarter (their first punt of the season in two games), and the only drive it had through its first eight that did not end in a score was a turnover on downs in the first quarter. The Ducks had a 59-yard touchdown run on their second offensive play of the game and a 65-yard touchdown pass on their third offensive play of the game. Explosive plays were everywhere at Autzen as the OK State defense provided little to no resistance on the day.
The back-to-back pick-sixes late in the third quarter to take the score of the game from simply overwhelming to outright historic were just salt on the wound. As teams exited the field once the clock hit zero, AC/DC’s “Moneytalks” played over the speakers, fittingly serenading Oklahoma State on its way back to Stillwater.
For the Pokes, it was the kind of performance that might prompt a deeper look at the state of their program. For the Ducks, it was a showcase that showed why, despite losing their starting quarterback, top receiver and elite linemen on both sides of the ball after last season, Oregon still has the depth and talent to be a title contender. — Paolo Uggetti
When Beau Pribula made what he called “an impossible decision” in December to leave Penn State as the Nittany Lions were preparing for the College Football Playoff, he did so to set himself up for days such as Saturday. Pribula left Happy Valley for the opportunity to compete for a starting job elsewhere, quickly landing at Missouri, where starter Brady Cook was out of eligibility.
Coming out of training camp, Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz said the quarterback competition between Sam Horn and Pribula would extend into the season, but Pribula inherited the job by default when Horn was injured on his first snap last week. Pribula shined in that game against FCS Central Arkansas, but considering the level of competition, it was hard to read too much into his performance. This week, it was different. With the rivalry against Kansas renewed, Pribula completed 30 of 39 passes for 334 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions in the 42-31 win. He looked the part of a quarterback who can successfully lead the Tigers into the SEC gauntlet that awaits.
Considering the circumstances of his departure from Penn State, Pribula’s immediate success must come with an extra layer of satisfaction for him. He would have been stuck behind Drew Allar again at Penn State and now has shown the country he, too, can play at a high level. Pribula’s situation in December was a factor in the recent proposal by the FBS Oversight Committee to move the transfer portal window to January, so it will have less overlap with the playoff. — Kyle Bonagura
Exhale, Horns, Arch is all right. A week after a disappointing performance in a 14-7 loss at Ohio State, Arch Manning got off to a bit of a slow start again on a sleepy, overcast, 11 a.m. Austin kickoff. He started 3-of-6 for 11 yards on the Longhorns’ first two drives, including a badly overthrown ball to Ryan Wingo that could’ve been intercepted if the defender had another step.
But on the next drive on third down, Manning got an easy throw and catch to Parker Livingstone, who turned it upfield as a defender slipped and raced 83 yards for a touchdown. By halftime, Manning was on fire and the rout was on, including three straight touchdown passes on three straight attempts, as Texas scored four touchdowns in 4:56 of game time.
But it wasn’t all smooth for Manning. He heaved an ill-advised throw into double coverage under pressure for an interception at the San Jose 13. He fumbled on a sack at his own 1-yard line in the third quarter but recovered it.
But he came back with a 20-yard touchdown run, tiptoeing down the sideline and showcasing the athletic ability that coach Steve Sarkisian said this week he should embrace.
The Longhorns had too many penalties (12-115), a few dropped passes and some protection problems they’ll need to get fixed before SEC play starts. But the defense held the Spartans in check, forced four turnovers a week after not having one against the Buckeyes, and Manning joined Colt McCoy, Vince Young and David Ash as the only Texas QBs over the past 20 years with two or more games of two 20-plus-yard TD passes and a 20-plus-yard TD run.
Sarkisian said he was pleased with the response by a quarterback who could’ve let his competitiveness linger after last week’s disappointment.
“I think he’s hard on himself differently than maybe I’m hard on him, but I’m also trying to ease some of that,” Sarkisian said. “When he gets hard on himself, I try to back himself off of that and try to make sure he’s got the right amount of confidence when he goes and plays because he’s a very talented player.” — Dave Wilson
Illinois eventually resembled a College Football Playoff contender at Duke, but first it reinforced the importance of being opportunistic and finding new ways to win. The Illini were sluggish in the first quarter and for much of the first half. Their celebrated offensive line couldn’t keep Vincent Anthony Jr. and Duke’s pass rushers away from quarterback Luke Altmyer. A Bret Bielema-coached team surprisingly couldn’t run the ball. At times, Illinois didn’t really look ready.
But the Illini found themselves on the right side of the handful of plays that determine outcomes. Duke’s repeated mistakes on special teams and on offense in Illinois’ end of the field were too many to overcome. Any team that is minus-5 in turnovers on its home field has no business winning.
Still, Illinois had to capitalize and did behind Altmyer, whose experience and talent showed up repeatedly. Altmyer completed 22 of 31 passes for 296 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions, spreading the ball to a largely new group of wide receivers. Illinois certainly misses Pat Bryant and Zakhari Franklin, but offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. hoped for more explosiveness with this receiving corps and got it, as Hank Beatty, Justin Bowick and others delivered.
Bielema’s championship teams at Wisconsin were built on elite line play and the power run. This Illini squad hasn’t really hit its stride with the run game, and ultimately might be pass-heavy with one of the nation’s more proven quarterbacks in Altmyer and a dynamic group of wideouts. Illinois won’t be able to count on every opponent to make the number of mistakes Duke did, but the Illini now have a track record of taking advantage, which should serve them well during Big Ten play. — Adam Rittenberg
The curse is broken. Matt Campbell and his Cyclones have finally defeated Iowa in Ames for the first time in his tenure. Iowa State’s latest bout with its rival, a 16-13 win, was a nail-biter decided in the final minute as usual.
In securing its first home win over Iowa since 2011, Iowa State has won three of its past four against its in-state foe. Six of the past seven Cy-Hawk winners have scored 20 points or less. It takes a remarkable amount of toughness to survive these low-scoring brawls.
But this might be Campbell’s toughest team yet.
Throughout his tenure, the head coach has fixated on “winning on the margins,” doing all the little things right to overcome any talent deficit and get games into the fourth quarter. These days, the proof is in the results: Iowa State has won eight of its past nine games decided by one-score margins.
Kicker Kyle Konrardy got to be the Cy-Hawk hero yet again, drilling a clutch 54-yard go-ahead field goal in the final two minutes. He got that opportunity thanks to Rocco Becht guiding a 13-play, six-minute drive in the fourth quarter that featured three third-down conversions. Iowa State’s defense finished the job with pass rusher Tamatoa McDonough, a little-known transfer from Yale, slamming Iowa quarterback Mark Gronowski down for back-to-back sacks to kill any hopes of a game-winning drive.
“These are milestone moments,” Campbell said. “Our kids, the schedule, what we’ve been up against — real toughness.”
This team had to have the right stuff from the start to pull this off. It took everything the Cyclones had to survive a 24-21 win over Kansas State in Ireland during Week 0. Then they had to come home and figure out how to keep playing their best ball. In many ways, they still haven’t. But what Campbell loves most is the way this Becht-led squad plays with steady resolve, how it can hang in there when things aren’t going its way and keep pushing.
This rivalry win is more proof that this group knows how to win in the fourth quarter — and the Cyclones might be ready to go win the Big 12, too. — Max Olson
-
Eli Lederman
NORMAN, Okla. — A week after John Mateer threw for the most yards in an Oklahoma quarterback debut against Illinois State, the transfer passer’s instinctive playmaking highlighted an imperfect performance that helped propel the No. 18 Sooners to a 24-13 win over No. 15 Michigan on Saturday night.
While Oklahoma smothered Wolverines freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood, Mateer completed 21 of his 34 passes for 270 yards with a passing touchdown and an interception. He also finished with a team-high 19 carries for 74 yards, adding a pair of rushing scores on either side of halftime in his second career start for the Sooners.
“You saw what he can do,” Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables said of Mateer. “He falls forward a lot. He’s got great strength and great skills. Tough guy. He’s fearless. He attacks everything without fear.”
Playing behind four new offensive line starters, including freshman left tackle Michael Fasusi, Mateer remained poised against the Michigan pass rush early, connecting on completions of 34, 31 and 21 yards across the Sooners’ initial pair of offensive drives. According to ESPN Research, Mateer finished 8-of-13 with 156 passing yards and a touchdown in blitzing situations Saturday.
Oklahoma opened the scoring on its opening possession via a pop pass from Mateer to wide receiver Deion Burks, who logged a team-high seven receptions for 101 yards. Mateer’s 2-yard rushing score with 22 seconds remaining in the second quarter handed Oklahoma a 14-0 halftime lead, and he used his legs again for a 10-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter.
Mateer’s 19 carries marked the fourth-highest single-game tally of his career and included three runs of at least 10 yards. With his pair of rushing scores, Mateer joined Lamar Jackson and D’Eriq King as the only FBS players to record at least one passing and rushing score in eight consecutive games since 2015, according to ESPN Research, dating to his breakout campaign at Washington State last fall.
“John’s a willing runner,” Sooners offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle said. “He understands what it takes to win. They’re definitely designed QB runs in the game. At the end of the day, you’re just trying to win a football game, and John Mateer is willing [to run]. He probably took a big hit or two tonight. But hopefully all for the good of the team.”
Mateer’s night was not without mistakes. He was intercepted by Michigan defensive back TJ Metcalf in the first quarter after overthrowing tight end Will Huggins. Mateer was nearly intercepted again after halftime, and his third-quarter overthrow in the end zone beyond the hands of tight end Jaren Kanak cost the Sooners seven points as the Wolverines mounted a second-half comeback.
But Mateer’s risk-taking and flair for the extraordinary were also the drivers for Oklahoma in only the Sooners’ third win over a top-15 opponent under Venables. The Sooners led 14-7 early in the third quarter when Mateer shed a tackle in the backfield, rolled to his right and fired a 36-yard strike to wide receiver Isaiah Sategna. Mateer ran in his second touchdown and lifted the Sooners to a 21-7 advantage just two plays later.
“The thing with John, I trust that kid to like no end,” Arbuckle said. “He understands moments and situations. He knows when to take a chance, when not to take a chance. So whenever he lets one rip and puts the ball in what someone may say is a risky situation, whenever he does that, I have the utmost confidence that he’s making the right decision.”
Another one of Mateer’s risks paid off early in the fourth quarter, ultimately launching an 8:27 drive that allowed Oklahoma to drain the remaining minutes and any lingering hope of a Michigan comeback.
Facing second-and-10 from the Sooners’ 38-yard line, Mateer again rolled out and — with Wolverines linebacker Jaishawn Barham bearing down on him — made a daring throw off his back foot into heavy traffic to find Kanak for a 9-yard connection.
“[Kanak] kind of went to the open space and I threw it a little dangerous,” Mateer said. “But he made it happen.”
A timely bit of innovation, Mateer’s throw marked the start of a 16-play, 78-yard scoring drive that effectively iced Oklahoma’s Week 2 victory and showed off the very best of Mateer and what his game-changing playmaking ability can offer the Sooners.
Oklahoma visits Temple in Week 3 before embarking on a gauntlet of an SEC schedule at home against Auburn on Sept. 20.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment11 months agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024